Nihon Keizai says DaimlerChrysler will sell Mitsubishi trucks,

June 18, 2002

TOKYO -- Bloomberg News reports that DaimlerChrysler AG will sell Mitsubishi Motors Corp.'s small Canter trucks after it stops producing its own Vario truck,accordong to the Nihon Keizai newspaper. They went on to report that The Japanese automaker's shares rose as much as 8.6 percent, their biggest rise in 10 weeks.

DaimlerChrysler, which owns 37 percent of Japan's No. 4 automaker, will sell Canter trucks under the Mitsubishi Motors brand name, the paper said. The Japanese company sells about 80,000 Canter trucks a year worldwide.

"We are exploring a number of possibilities for our truck unit and this is one of them," said Saeko Yoshioka, a Mitsubishi Motors spokeswoman.

The Japanese press reported in March that Mitsubishi Motors will turn its truck division into a 70 percent-owned subsidiary with the remaining 30 percent owned by DaimlerChrysler. The maker of the Pajero sport-utility vehicle abandoned an earlier plan to separate its commercial vehicle and passenger car operations last July.

"The move would be a positive one as it shows further commitment by DaimlerChrysler to the company," said Atsushi Osa, who helps oversea 500 billion yen ($4 billion) at Sumitomo Marine Asset Management.

DaimlerChrysler produces an annual 16,000 units of the 2-ton Vario truck, first launched in 1996, the paper said. The company will stop production next year because of a worldwide slump in truck demand, the paper said.

Mitsubishi Motors will launch a new Canter model today for sale in Europe and elsewhere.

Mitsubishi Motors shares rose as much as 28 yen to 353 yen.